Fortune and Men's Eyes

Last updated

Fortune and Men's Eyes
Fortune and mens eyes poster.png
One of theatrical release posters
Directed by Harvey Hart
Written by John Herbert (play and screenplay)
Produced by Lester Persky
Lewis M. Allen
Starring Wendell Burton
Michael Greer
Zooey Hall
Danny Freedman
Larry Perkins
James Barron
Hugh Webster
Tom Harvey
Jan Granik
Kirk McColl
Vance Davis
Robert Goodier
Lázaro Pérez
CinematographyGeorges Dufaux
Edited byDouglas Robertson
Music by Galt MacDermot
Distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release date
  • June 15, 1971 (1971-06-15)(U.S.)
Running time
102 minutes
CountriesUnited States
Canada
LanguageEnglish
BudgetCAD 1,109,000

Fortune and Men's Eyes is a 1967 play and 1971 film written by John Herbert about a young man's experience in prison, exploring themes of homosexuality and sexual slavery.

Contents

Plot of the play

The plot follows Smitty, a 17-year-old, after he is sentenced to six months in a youth reformatory. His cellmates are Rocky, a "dangerous and unpredictable" 19-year-old serving time for stealing a car from his male lover; Mona, an 18- or 19-year-old who is sentenced for making a homosexual pass at a group of boys; and Queenie, a flamboyant homosexual serving time for robbing an old woman. The only other character who appears onstage is a corrections officer.

Smitty, who asserts that he is heterosexual, seems to get along with his new cellmates quickly. Queenie, who has friends amongst the "politicians" of the prison, informs him of what to expect, and warns that Mona has been gang-raped because he did not have an "old man" looking out for him. Rocky later manipulates Smitty into becoming his sexual subordinate by threatening to arrange a similar treatment for him if he refuses. Smitty tries to make the best of his new situation, and he learns that Rocky knows a secret about the Guard taking a bribe and uses that secret to influence the guard as needed. Smitty also learns of further horrors to which uncooperative inmates can be subjected. Queenie encourages Smitty to beat up Rocky and spread the news so he can win a better protector from amongst the "politicians" in the guard house; Queenie makes this suggestion for his own benefit rather than Smitty's.

At Christmas time, the inmates prepare to perform in a pageant. Queenie has planned a drag act, and Mona intends to read Shakespeare. Mona's act is rejected at the last minute, and Smitty uses the information he knows to get the guard to leave him alone with Mona while everyone else attends the show. Mona admits he was falsely accused of the crime for which he is serving time, and Smitty admits unhappiness that Queenie is now choosing his lovers for him. Smitty makes an offer to become Mona's "old man", which Mona refuses. Smitty becomes upset, but Mona comforts him with Shakespeare's poem When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes. The two are laughing and embracing when Rocky and Queenie return from the pageant: Rocky and Queenie immediately begin to beat Mona, accusing him of making a sexual advance on Smitty. The Guard takes Mona away to be tortured, despite Smitty's pleas. Angrily, Smitty threatens both Queenie and Rocky, establishing himself as the new dominant male in the cell. The play ends with Smitty listening to Mona's punishment offstage and swearing to "pay them back". [1]

History

The title of the play comes from William Shakespeare's Sonnet 29, which begins with the line, "When in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes...". It has been translated into 40 languages and produced in over 100 countries. [2] It is the most published Canadian play,[ citation needed ] and won the Dominion Drama Festival's Massey Award in 1968 (an award which Herbert refused) [3] and the Floyd S. Chalmers Canadian Play Award in 1975. [4]

Fortune and Men's Eyes was inspired in part by Herbert's own experience. In the 1940s, he was attacked outside a gay bar while dressed in drag and then convicted of indecency based on the testimony of his attackers. Following the conviction, he was imprisoned in the Ontario Reformatory in Guelph. [5] [6] The character of Queenie in the play is an authorial self-insertion. [5]

Herbert encountered difficulties in getting the play staged. After being rejected by several directors, Herbert, on the recommendation of Robertson Davies, who frequented the University Club at which Herbert worked as a waiter, sent the script to Douglas Campbell at the Stratford Festival. [7] Campbell accepted the play for the festival's young actors workshop and assigned it to Bruno Gerussi to direct, but the Stratford Festival's board of directors forbade the production from being staged publicly. [8]

Herbert sent a copy of Fortune and Men's Eyes to renowned Canadian theatre critic Nathan Cohen, who replied, "I hope you understand that there's not a chance in the world of this getting a professional production in Canada. I've taken the liberty of sending it to a producer of my acquaintance in New York and, of course, promise nothing." [9] Cohen recommended the play to Broadway press agent David Rothenberg, who in turn recommended it to Dustin Hoffman. Hoffman workshopped the play at the New York Actors Studio in 1966, taking the role of Rocky, while Jon Voight played Smitty. [8]

The play, produced by Rothenberg, premiered off-Broadway in New York City at the Actors Playhouse from February 23, 1967, to January 1968. Reviews were mixed, and many reviewers were shocked by the subject matter. Reviewer Herbert Whittaker wrote in The Globe and Mail that the play was "the art of washing our dirty linen in the neighbor's yard." [8] Cohen wrote in the Toronto Star that the play "lifts the carpet and shows what is underneath"; he added that it "asks deeply disturbing questions about long-established personal and social assumptions. It does not enrich our vision. It undermines it". [8]

Fortune and Men's Eyes inspired the creation of the Fortune Society, a New York City-based advocacy and support organization for former prisoners. [10] [11]

The play toured to Chicago, San Francisco, Montreal, and Toronto. [8]

In 1969, the play was produced and directed by Sal Mineo at the Coronet Theatre in Los Angeles. Don Johnson played the lead role of Smitty and Michael Greer played the role of Queenie, Smitty's cellmate. Mineo took the role of Rocky. This production garnered more critical approval, but included additional scenes which had not been approved by Herbert. [12]

Film adaptation

A film adaptation of Fortune and Men's Eyes was released in 1971. [13] Directed by Harvey Hart, it starred Wendell Burton as Smitty, Michael Greer as Queenie, Danny Freedman as Mona, Hugh Webster as Rabbit and Zooey Hall as Rocky.

Freedman won the Canadian Film Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 23rd Canadian Film Awards in 1971. At the same time, editor Douglas Robertson won the Canadian Film Award for Best Film Editing. [14]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Ondaatje</span> Canadian novelist and poet

Philip Michael Ondaatje is a Sri Lankan-born Canadian poet, fiction writer and essayist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alan Bates</span> English actor (1934–2003)

Sir Alan Arthur Bates was an English actor who came to prominence in the 1960s, when he appeared in films ranging from the popular crime drama Whistle Down the Wind to the "kitchen sink" drama A Kind of Loving.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sal Mineo</span> American actor (1939–1976)

Salvatore Mineo Jr. was an American actor. He was best known for his role as John "Plato" Crawford in the drama film Rebel Without a Cause (1955), which earned him a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor at age 17, making him the fifth-youngest nominee in the category.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Short</span> Canadian and American actor and comedian (born 1950)

Martin Hayter Short is a Canadian and American actor, comedian, and writer. Short is known as an energetic comedian who gained prominence for his roles in sketch comedy. He has also acted in numerous films and television shows. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. Short was awarded as an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2019.

<i>Somebody Up There Likes Me</i> (1956 film) 1956 film by Robert Wise

Somebody Up There Likes Me is a 1956 American drama film directed by Robert Wise and starring Paul Newman and Pier Angeli, based on the life of middleweight boxing legend Rocky Graziano. The supporting cast features Everett Sloane, Eileen Heckart, Harold J. Stone, and Sal Mineo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Colicos</span> Canadian actor (1928–2000)

John Colicos was a Canadian actor. He performed on stage and television in the United States and Canada.

Edmond is a one-act play written by David Mamet. It premiered at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, on June 4, 1982. The first New York production was October 27 of the same year, at the Provincetown Playhouse. The play consists of twenty-three short scenes. In the original production, each of the actors took on multiple roles, save the two playing Edmond and his wife. Kenneth Branagh starred as Edmond in a production of the play in London in 2003.

John Herbert was the pen name of John Herbert Brundage, a Canadian playwright, drag queen, and theatre director best known for his 1967 play Fortune and Men's Eyes.

<i>Edmond</i> (film) 2005 American drama film

Edmond is a 2005 American thriller film directed by Stuart Gordon and starring William H. Macy, based on the 1982 play Edmond by David Mamet. Mamet also wrote the screenplay for the film. Edmond features Julia Stiles, Rebecca Pidgeon, Denise Richards, Mena Suvari, Joe Mantegna, Bai Ling, Jeffrey Combs, Dylan Walsh and George Wendt in supporting roles. It was screened at several film festivals from September 2005 to May 2006, and had a limited release on July 14, 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dickens Hill</span> Soap opera character

Dickens Hill is a fictional prison in the BBC soap opera EastEnders. The prison is part of a storyline that first aired between 1988 and 1989. The storyline centres on the popular character Den Watts and was filmed on location at Dartmoor Prison in Devon. The episodes were shot in a block of intensive filming, over five weeks, but they were worked into regular episodes of EastEnders later in the year, from September 1988 to February 1989. This was done in order to keep the character Den Watts on-screen after Den's actor, Leslie Grantham, had left the show. Although not part of the original storyline, the prison also briefly appears in 2017 when Max Branning visits his former cellmate, Luke Browning. The prison also appears in a separate storyline in 2018 when Mick Carter is on remand for the shooting of Stuart Highway.

Harvey Hart was a Canadian television and film director and a television producer.

Louis Negin was a British-born Canadian actor, best known for his roles in the films of Guy Maddin.

<i>The Magic Garden of Stanley Sweetheart</i> 1970 American film

The Magic Garden of Stanley Sweetheart is a 1970 American film distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) about a confused college student's experiences with sex, relationships, and drugs in late 1960s New York City. Produced by Martin Poll and directed by Leonard J. Horn, the film was based on the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by Robert T. Westbrook, who was also an associate producer of the film. It was the film debut of Don Johnson, who appeared in the title role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Greer</span> American actor

Michael Greer was an American actor, comedian and cabaret performer. He is best known for his appearances in the films The Gay Deceivers and Fortune and Men's Eyes, and for being one of the first openly gay actors to appear in major Hollywood films.

The Fortune Society is a New York City-based non-profit organization that provides support to the formerly incarcerated. Some of the services offered include help with finding housing and jobs, adjusting to civilian life, and educational opportunities. It was founded by David Rothenberg in 1967 as a result of his experience at Riker's Island while researching for the play Fortune and Men's Eyes.

David Rothenberg is a veteran Broadway producer and prisoners' rights activist. After reading the script for Fortune and Men's Eyes by former prisoner and playwright John Herbert, he was instrumental in producing the play for an off-Broadway production. Later, he was a civilian observer during the Attica Prison riot, which left a deep impression on him and spurred his lifelong activism for prisoner's rights. This inspired him to found the Fortune Society organization, which advocates for prisoner's rights and works with former inmates to aid them in adjusting to life after prison. Rothenberg is an agnostic and lives in the West Village in New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Garrett (actor)</span> American actor

Roger Garrett was an American actor. He acted on stage and played supporting roles in television series and films. He had a starring role in the West Coast production of Fortune and Men's Eyes (1969) and a starring role in the horror/thriller motion picture Night of the Cobra Woman (1972).

Danny Freedman was a Canadian actor. He was best known for his performance as Mona in the film Fortune and Men's Eyes, for which he won the Canadian Film Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 23rd Canadian Film Awards in 1971. He was born in Montreal.

<i>Buried Loot</i> 1935 film directed by George B. Seitz

Buried Loot is a 1935 American crime film, the first installment of 50 shorts in the Crime Does Not Pay series produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and released to theaters between 1935 and 1947. Directed by George B. Seitz, Buried Loot stars Robert Taylor in his first leading role for MGM, although he and the rest of the cast and crew are uncredited during the film's presentation.

I'm Going to Get You, Elliott Boy is a Canadian prison drama film, directed by Ed Forsyth and released in 1971. The film stars Ross Stephanson as Elliott Markson, a young man who is sent to prison after being set up to rob a bank by his girlfriend Sherri, and is hardened by the experience until becoming a cold-blooded killer, principally by the prevalence of prison rape and physical and mental abuse.

References

  1. John Herbert, Fortune and Men's Eyes. Grove Press, New York, 1967.
  2. "UW acquires Herbert archives". Waterloo Chronicle. June 2, 1982. p. 17. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  3. "John Herbert". The Canadian Encyclopedia . Retrieved August 19, 2019.
  4. New, William H. (2002). Encyclopedia of Literature in Canada. University of Toronto Press. pp. 63–64. ISBN   9780387201092.
  5. 1 2 John Herbert at the Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia.
  6. "The Body politic, 1973". Toronto, Pink Triangle Press. September 30, 1973 via Internet Archive.
  7. "That Man's Scope: John Herbert now". The Body Politic , Vol 10 (1973).
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia - Fortune and Men's Eyes". www.canadiantheatre.com.
  9. "Allan Gould > Magazines > Profiles > "Homage to Cohen: Nathan Cohen Remembered"". Archived from the original on July 2, 2012. Retrieved June 16, 2014.
  10. Gelder, Lawrence Van (June 27, 2001). "John Herbert Dies at 75; Wrote of Prison Life". The New York Times.
  11. "The Fortune Society | Building People, Not Prisons". The Fortune Society.
  12. Michaud, Michael Gregg. Sal Mineo: A Biography. Crown Archetype: New York.
  13. "Fortune and Men's Eyes: earnest prison drama". The Globe and Mail , June 24, 1971.
  14. "New Quebec film sweeps 8 Canadian film awards". Toronto Star , October 2, 1971.